Laminated stool construction



Filed Dec. 11, 1951 2 Sheets-Sheet l HILL Ill IE1. 2-.

INVENTOR. Herbert King BY x22,

2 Sheets-Sheet 2 y 4, 1955 H. KING LAMINATED STOOL cousmucwxou Filed Dec. 11, 1951 :EII3 l= United States Patent LAMINATED STOOL CONSTRUCTION Herbert King, San Francisco, Calif., assignor of one-half to Edward B. Gregg, San Francisco, Calif.

Application December 11, 1951, Serial No. 261,005

1 Claim. (Cl. 155-186) This invention relates to a stool, chair or other like structure.

In fabricating stools such as bar stools used in cocktail bars and lunch counters or industrial stools used in industrial plants to seat operators at machines, it is common practice to provide a main frame member for the cushion or stool top and to attach legs to this frame member. It is customary to form such frame member from wood or metal. Metal of a sufficient gauge to provide adequate strength involves the use of a relatively expensive material. Moreover, it is rather difficult or expensive to secure the cushion and seat cover to a metal frame member.

It is, therefore, a common practice to form such frame member of wood. Wood is a less expensive material, it is not as scarce as metal during periods when materials in general are in short supply and it has other advantages. However, competitive conditions leave much to be desired in connection with a Wooden frame member for a bar stool or the like. Thus the manufacturing operations which are necessary to fabricate a wood frame member are relatively complicated and expensive. There is a market preference for a round top stool which necessitates a round frame member. This, in turn, involves a waste of wood if a block of wood is cut to the desired round shape, or it necessitates a time-consuming, expensive operation to shape the wood to a circular configuration on a form. The technique involved in forming wood frame members for stool tops is expensive and does not lend itself well to mass production. Moreover, a sturdy wood construction requires a laminated, solid construction which is very heavy.

It is an object of'the present invention to provide improved means'of forming the main frame member and the seat portion of a stool, chair, or the like.

A further object of the invention is to provide a stool, chair or other like structure having an'attractivedesign, which is sufiiciently sturdy and durable to compete with more expensive stools or chairs in whichthe frame member for the cushion is constructed of wood or metal, but which embodies certain features that substantially reduce the cost of the article.

Another object of the invention is to provide a stool, chair or the like, and a method of making the same, which isvsturdy and is also lightweight. 7

Another object of the'inventionis to provide means for forming the seat portion or top of a stool or chair which avoids the necessity of employing a wood or metal frame member and which employs, instead of these materials, a substitute material of low initial cost, such substitute material also providing economies in manufacturing operations.

Another object of the invention is to provide a means whereby paper or other fibrous material can be used to form the main frame member of a stool top, whereby economies can be effected in material and operating costs without the compromise of an inferior product.

These and other objects of the invention will be apparent from the ensuing description and the appended claim.

r as described in detail hereinafter.

One form of theinvention is shown by way of example in the accompanying drawings, in which:

Figure l is a perspective view of the framework of a stool such as that shown in Figure 2.

Figure 2 is a vertical mid-section through a stool constructed in accordancewith the invention along the line 22 of Figure 1.

Figure 3 is a view showing a method of forming circular frame members for stool tops in accordance with the present invention.

Figure 4 is a view similar to that of Figure 3 but showing a methd of forming a square frame member for a stool top in accordance with the present invention.

Figure 5 is a view partly in elevation and partly in section, showing a stool constructed in accordance with the present invention and provided with a back.

Referring now to the drawings and more particularly to Figures 1 and 2, a stool is shown in Figure 2 and is there generally designated as 10. This stool comprises a seat or top portion 11 and legs 12. The latter are shown as being four in number, although a greater or lesser number may be employed. They are illustrated as being of wood construction but they may be of metal construction. As shown, the legs 12 are banded by a steel band 13 which is fixed to the legs by means of bolts 14 and nuts 15. This band may be of aluminum, copper, plastic, laminated paper or other construction. The band 13 serves to reinforce the structure and also as a foot rest. It may be fashioned in some ornamental design such as that shown, to add to the over-all attractive appearance of the stool.

At its upper end each of the legs is recessed at 16 to receive a circular frame member or ring 17. This frame member is constructed in accordance with the invention The frame member 17 may be flush with the legs or it may extend outwardly thereof as illustrated. An overhang such as shown at 17b is preferred for reasons which will be made apparent hereinafter. The frame member or ring 17 is fixed to the legs 12 by means of bolts 18, nuts 19 and washers 20, as indicated. The bolts 18 have flat frusto-conical heads 30 which are countersunk in the frame member so as to be flush therewith.

At this point it is desired to point out one of the several advantages of the novel frame member 17. By reason of its unique construction, the frame member 17 can be easily afiixed to the legs 12 by bolts. This avoids the At present the legs of stools are frequently glued ornailed to the frame member. This is inferior to a bolted construction, and when the legs become loose because of use or drying of the wood, they cannot be tightened. The bolted construction of this invention allows tightening of the legs merely by tightening the bolts.

Any type of seat cover and cushion may be afiixed to the frame member 17. Thus, a simple flat wood, metal, plastic or composition board member such as shown at 21 in Figure 2 of appropriate size, shape and strength may be affixed to the frame member 17 by any suitable means, such as glue or other adhesive, nails, screws, bolts, etc. However, for most purposes it is desirable to provide a more resilient, yielding, comfortable seat. As illustrated, this may be accomplished by employing the member 21 as a base and providing an outer seat covering of leather or imitation leather, such as shown at 31, and a suitable quantity of padding such as shown at 32. The padding Patented May 24, 1955.

is interposed between the covering 31 and the rigid portion of the framework, and it may consist of any of the customary materials such as kapok, cotton, etc. As illustrated, the cover is formed in two parts comprising a top portion 33 and a side portion 34 which are stitched together at 35. The padding 32 is distributed to provide a crowned cushion at 36 and suitable side padding at 37.

It is another important advantage of the novel frame member or ring 17 that the seat covering 31 is very easily attached thereto. Thus, in the preferred embodiment of my invention the side portion 34 of the seat covering is brought down beneath the overhang 17b of the frame member 17 and the lower edge of the covering is fixed to the undersurface of the overhang by any suitable means, such as tacks, nails or screws shown at 38. The attachment is thereby concealed, and it can be accomplished with ease.

Referring now to Figure 3 a method is there illustrated of forming a circular frame member or ring such as that shown at 17 in Figures 1 and 2. A mandrel 45 is there shown which is of circular cross-section and of a diameter equal to the desired inside diameter of the frame member 17. A web of paper is shown at 46 which is coated on its undersurface with a layer of adhesive 47. This coated paper is wound about the mandrel 45. One method of operation is to unwind the web 4-6 from a pay-off reel (not shown) and simultaneously wind it up, after application of the adhesive coating 47, on the mandrel 45 by rotating the latter. A suitable tension will be maintained on the web 4-6 to apply pressure to the convolutions of the paper as it is wound up on the mandrel. Such tension and pressure provide a tightly wound product in which the successive convolutions of paper adhere firmly together. Any of various types of adhesive may be used, such as sodium silicate, various animal and vegetable glues, rubber cement and synthetic adhesives, to effect a firm cohesion of successive convolutions of paper.

This process is continued until a ring of the desired thickness and outside diameter is produced. The process may be carried out with a relatively narrow strip of paper to produce in one operation a ring of the desired width. Alternatively, a wider strip of paper may be wound on a mandrel or form to produce a relatively long tube, which can then be cut at intervals to provide rings of the proper width.

Alternatively a spirally wound tube may be produced, similar to the familiar mailing tube. As is well-known, these tubes consist of two or more spirally wound plies of paper. Each ply is wound oppositely to the adjoining ply or plies. A tube or this character may then be cut to individual rings of the proper width.

Referring now to Figure 4, a square mandrel 45a is there illustrated. It is revolved in clockwise direction, as indicated, and in so doing it winds 21 web 46 of paper to produce a square ring 17a. This and any subsequent operation are carried out in the same manner as the operations illustrated in Figure 3 and described hereinabove. However, because of the shape of the mandrel 45a, the resulting ring 17a has a square shape which adapts it for use with a square stool or chair.

It will be apparent that frame members of other configurations may be constructed and used, e. g., oval and hexagonal shapes. It is also contemplated that materials other than paper be used provided they are of a suitable texture and strength. Thus felted fibrous materials in general may be employed to construct the stool top frame member of the present invention. Cloth may also be used for this purpose. However, paper is the preferred material. A stool top frame member constructed with paper in the manner indicated provides a sturdy article, it has the advantage of a starting material of low cost and the legs and seat cover are very easily attached.

Referring now to Figure 5, a stool or chair 10a is there shown which is identical with the stool 10 of Figure 2. Parts similar to parts of Figure 2 are similarly numbered. The stool 10a, however, is provided with a back 50 and arms 51. The back 50 comprises a U-shaped wood or metal frame 52 and a solid backing 53. The arms 51 are shown as curved members which may be fixed to the frame 52 by any suitable means such as screws 54. The frame 52 and the arms 51 are bolted to the circular frame member 17 by means of bolts 18 and nuts 19 in essentially the same manner as the legs 12.

It will, therefore, be apparent that a stool, chair or other like structure has been provided which is economical to manufacture, lends itself to mass production technique, makes available a low cost raw material and facilitates certain manufacturing operations. The product is sturdy and durable and for most purposes is the equal of a stool or chair in which the top frame member is constructed of wood or metal. Also the product is lightweight.

I claim:

A structure of the character described comprising a plurality of legs for supporting a seat, each said leg having a notch formed in its upper end; an annular frame member constructed of a continuous length of paper wound about a common axis, the successive convolutions whereof are adhesively secured together; and a seat comprising a quantity of padding and a seat cover; said frame member being received within said notches, being bolted to said legs and overhanging the outer edges of the notches; said padding being arranged to provide a cushion atop the structure; said seat cover being arranged to cover and enclose the padding, to circumscribe and conceal the frame member and to extend beneath the overhanging portion of the frame member; and means attaching the lower edge of the seat cover to said overhanging portion.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 134,545 Heywood Ian. 7, 1873 1,712,412 Westerman May 7, 1929 2,169,139 Foote Aug. 8, 1939 2,269,331 Arbron Jan. 6, 1942 2,498,837 Gelman Feb. 28, 1950 2,512,797 Harvuot June 27, 1950 2,599,826 Halstead et al June 10, 1952 2,630,394 Atwood Mar. 3, 1953 FOREIGN PATENTS 553,861 Great Britain June 8, 1943 

